Chapter 9 The Stamp

The early morning rays of sunlight filtered through the tall buildings in Ye City and dappled into the car. Poppi sat happily inside the taxi as if to match the sun's brightness. Out of impulse, she typed something on her phone.

Right after that, she suddenly remembered something and quickly called Shirley again.

"Poppi, don't push me!" Shirley's weary voice flowed from the other end of the line. "We've been on the plane for more than ten hours, and it was so tiring! Ah I'll send you our boss's phone number right now. Don't bother me anymore, I'll talk to you after I get some sleep."

"Okay. Thanks!" "Tell your boss that if he agrees to have an interview, I will give him a stamp with the palace gate printed upside down," Poppi added in a serious voice.

"What stamp?" Shirley asked. Shirley was confused by what Poppi said.

"A stamp with the palace gate printed upside down," Poppi answered. "You don't have to say it clearly. He will understand," she explained.

"Well... Fine," Shirley conceded. "But I don't know if our boss will agree or not. If not, you can talk to my agent and ask your magazine to interview me," she quipped.

"Our magazine is Mr. Fashion. Miss Shirley, are you sure about this?" Poppi said with a smile.

"...... I'm not sure."

"Ha-ha!"

They ended the call after a few moments, and Poppi headed to the office. Upon her arrival, she saw the director of the Editing Department, Teresa Zhang. She had come back as expected. Just as Poppi was quickly about to explain what happened yesterday, Teresa stopped her.

"I know everything," said Teresa. She kept her hands down and continued, "Indeed, Tina has gone too far. She abused you while I was away."

While Poppi was thinking who had told Teresa that, she saw Wendy wink behind her back with a smile. "Wendy, did you exaggerate?" she asked.

"No, I didn't! It's all true," Wendy said and quickly waved her hand.

"Poppi, let's talk about your idea. Can you interview Malcolm? Or do you have any other plans?" Teresa asked earnestly.

"I think I do..."

Later in the morning meeting, Poppi stood in front of the large screen and told the magazine's entire staff about the plan she had discussed with the director earlier. She sported a business suit, and her voice sounded confident without a hint of nervousness. Meanwhile, Tina, who sat in front, kept sneering.

"After careful consideration yesterday, I don't think it is appropriate to invite Malcolm to be the first interviewee in this season. Besides, our magazine is an entertainment magazine. Although it is the annual business interview, I think it still has to undergo a transition process first. For example, we can interview an entertainment industry tycoon who does not only meet our traditions but also follows the theme. What do you think?" Poppi proposed.

All the staff of the Editing Department nodded their heads. Soon enough, the others followed suit.

"Do you have a candidate?" Tina asked.

"I'm not sure if he is a good choice," Poppi replied. She looked at everyone in the room and said, "It is just my idea, but it is up to you to consider it." Afterwards, she flashed a photo on the screen and announced, "It's him, Hugh Su."

A man's image appeared on the screen. He wore a suit jacket with buttons undone, a pair of slightly tight-knit pants, and shiny leather shoes. His left hand was in his pocket, while the other was under his chin. His lips curved up into a wicked smile.

"He is the boss of Joy Entertainment Group, and also an international A-list supermodel. He mainly does business abroad, but he has intended to enter the domestic market last year." Everything Poppi said about Hugh Su was correct. She pointed at his photo on the screen and continued, "I believe that a lot of media magazines will target him. If we manage to interview him first and be the first to do so in our country, our magazine will be a big success."

Teresa Zhang nodded her head approvingly, arrogance apparent on her face. After all, she really disliked Tina. How could a young inexperienced girl like her take the position of deputy editor-in-chief? She wasn't convinced. Therefore, she had to give Tina a blow when it came to selecting the interviewee, and the Editing Department must give a blow to the Advertising Department.

"It's easy for you to say that. How are we able to invite him?" Tina countered. She crossed her arms, leaned slightly against the back of her seat, and said, "It's not easy to interview Malcolm, but is it easy if it was Hugh Su?"

"I..."

"It so happens that Poppi's friend, Shirley is the chief supermodel of Joy Entertainment Group. Poppi got Hugh Su's phone number through Shirley. I believe that will be easier than inviting Malcolm, right?" Teresa Zhang interjected and looked at Tina defiantly.

"Wow! Shirley! That long-legged beauty is actually Poppi's friend!"

"Poppi is awesome! Now, it won't be so hard to interview Hugh Su..."

As the rest of the staff whispered among themselves, Poppi felt slightly uneasy. She had not even seen Hugh yet. When she heard her director's words, it seemed that this interview was already a sure thing.

They discussed it for a long time. Tina always chose Malcolm, while Teresa Zhang believed in Hugh Su. In the end, they still refused to compromise. At last, the editor-in-chief said that they would interview the one who got invited first, and the one who got invited at a later date could be on the next cover of the magazine. After all, both Malcolm and Hugh were influential men, and who would want to lose any of them?

The meeting eventually ended. After everyone got out of the room, Wendy followed Poppi and stopped her.

Of course, Poppi knew what was on her mind. Her lips curved into a smile and said, "Go ahead, what do you want me to do?"

"Ha-ha..." Suddenly, Wendy grabbed Poppi's arm and asked, "Are you sure that you are Shirley's good friend? Can I meet her? I want to take a picture with her. I want to see my idol and ask for an autograph! I also want to ask her if she would be interested in shooting a TV play. I want to ask her..."

As Poppi continued to listen, a smile slowly crept upon her face. She subconsciously glanced at Wendy, and the latter reminded her of Celine again.

At that moment, her phone rang.

She promised that she would take Wendy to meet Shirley and went back to her desk. When she sat in front of her table, her phone rang again. She looked at the caller's number on the screen and hesitated for a bit. Then, she answered the phone, "Hello?"

"Are you Poppi?" a man's voice spoke through the line.

"Yes. Excuse me, but you are?"

"Do you have the stamp with the palace gate printed upside down?" the man said and did not answer her question. Poppi immediately understood who he was. "Hello, Mr. Su," she said with a grin. It happened so fast!

When there was no response from Poppi's side, Hugh Su replied, "It's me. I want to buy your stamp."

"Didn't Shirley tell you, Mr. Su? If you agree to the interview, then I will give you the stamp for free. What do you think of this idea?" Poppi said, then took a pen and gently tapped it against the table.

"You do sound like a sly businessman. I don't like it. If you want to interview me, please communicate with me in a formal way. As for the stamp, we'll deal with it in private. Don't mix them up," Hugh Su said curtly.

At that point, Poppi stopped her hand. After a while, she uttered, "I was in a rush. We will talk to your assistant for the interview. I'm sorry to have caused you any trouble. Bye." After that, she pretended to end the call.